Health and Social Development Newshttps://news.ok.ubc.ca/hsd
Tue, 12 Dec 2017 14:00:26 +0000en-UShourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=4.2.18UBC professor tests software to help cancer patients have the 'tough conversations'https://news.ok.ubc.ca/hsd/2017/12/12/ubc-professor-tests-software-to-help-cancer-patients-have-the-tough-conversations/
https://news.ok.ubc.ca/hsd/2017/12/12/ubc-professor-tests-software-to-help-cancer-patients-have-the-tough-conversations/#commentsTue, 12 Dec 2017 14:00:26 +0000https://news.ok.ubc.ca/?p=14953Program may help those reluctant to engage in advance care planning

A UBC study investigating how cancer patients might use an advance care planning software created for seniors has shown promising results and led to improvements in the program.

Carole Robinson

Carole Robinson, a professor in the School of Nursing at UBC’s Okanagan campus, and Martha Cresswell, a student in the Master of Science nursing program, asked a group of oncology patients to use a web-based interactive program called PREPARE that is designed to engage people in advance care planning (ACP) conversations.

“Despite decades of work to embed advance care planning into health care systems, many patients who access cancer care do not understand their role in making choices and are simply unprepared to begin ACP conversations,” says Robinson. “This places them at risk of unwanted care, particularly during a health crisis.”

Cancer patients tend to have a ‘lack of engagement’ when it comes to advance care planning, says Robinson. This often leads to family members making decisions they are not ready for, conflict in a family, and negative healthcare consequences. While initially designed for seniors, Cresswell says PREPARE seemed promising for oncology patients and she gave it a test run.

“We wanted to explore the acceptability, applicability, and understandability of the ACP resource,” explains Creswell. “It had not been tested for use within oncology, but had previously been shown to positively influence the readiness of community-dwelling seniors to engage in ACP.”

Patients with a variety of cancers including breast, lymphoma, gastrointestinal and ovarian were part of the study group. Five topics were addressed: choose a medical decision-maker, decide what matters most in life, choose flexibility for your decision-maker, tell others about your medical wishes, and ask doctors the right questions.

Cresswell says participants engaged in personal reflection as they worked their way through the website, actively contemplating and debating the ACP options presented by PREPARE and comparing those options to their own life experiences. They also evaluated the resource for use as a cancer patient.

“While it was the first time PREPARE was used with oncology patients, it took them through some critical steps,” says Robinson. “And it began an on-going conversation about the potential for end-of-life preferences for care.”

In fact, the study shows a few participants had difficulty with the life-limiting language found within the website. Cresswell explains that end-of-life language can trigger worries and fears by challenging the patient’s goals for treatment and their focus on a cure. And Robinson agrees these findings can partially explain the barriers to ACP that appear unique to cancer patients who are receiving treatment.

“It’s all about encouraging the beginning of a conversation with your family so you can have a say in your care should something happen and you can no longer speak for yourself,” she adds. “We suggest patients start the conversation when they are well and to perhaps think of it as a gift to the family that may prevent future conflict or challenges.”

Robinson notes feedback from the participants led to a change in some of the terminology used in the program. Her next step may be a follow-up study to determine whether the language causes distress or disengagement from ACP.

This study, partially funded by a grant from the British Columbia Cancer Foundation, was recently published in the journal Supportive Care in Cancer.

UBC Okanagan is embarking on the largest fundraising campaign for students in its 12-year history. The Blue & Gold Campaign for Students aims to raise $100 million across both UBC campuses over three years to give promising students access to a life-changing education.

“Donors in the Okanagan have already played a crucial role in building our campus and shaping what it is today,” says Deborah Buszard, Deputy Vice-chancellor and Principal of UBC’s Okanagan campus. “We are equally committed to building greater supports for students to ensure the best and the brightest from near and far have access to a world-class education right here in the Okanagan, regardless of financial circumstances.”

The Blue & Gold Campaign for Students will support a range of student awards, including scholarships, bursaries, and experiential learning opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students at the Vancouver and Okanagan campuses. The awards will support students in need, students from under-represented communities, and leadership-based awards.

Tushar Dave, a recipient of the Deepak Binning Foundation Community Builder Scholarship and now a third-year undergraduate in medical biochemistry and molecular biology at UBC Okanagan, is one student who is benefitting from a UBC donor-funded award.

“The biggest factor for me was getting a UBC education here at home. I live in Kelowna and it is wonderful for me to have a UBC world-class education at my doorstep” said Dave. “Scholarships allow me to focus on what matters most: my studies. It’s important to continue supporting students so that we can give back to our communities. So that we can go to work and actually make a change in the world.”

Haley Seven Deers, a third-year history and anthropology student at UBC Okanagan, is another.

“These awards are truly life-changing for students,” said Seven Deers, who received a UBC Okanagan Aboriginal Entrance Award. “Every bit, no matter how small or large that you donate is going to have a huge impact on people’s lives. And not just on the students, but on all the people they will affect later in their careers. It’s such a beautiful thing that has such a far-reaching impact within society.”

UBC is providing matching funds of up to $5 million for new endowed donations to select Blue & Gold campaign priorities, which include bursaries and renewable entrance awards for students with high academic standing, known as Presidential Scholars, as well as for outstanding students recognized for their achievement and leadership who demonstrate financial need.

The campaign will also focus on the graduate student experience including opportunities to pursue research in collaboration with community partners and organizations to provide real-life applications for public benefit.

“The student awards that I have received have really helped me to focus my time and energy on engaging with communities in a meaningful way and also to focus on field work,” said Kelsey Copes-Gerbitz, a graduate student who studies wildfires at UBC in Vancouver. “My dream for the future is to help enable communities to co-exist with wildfire. Fire isn’t going away, but our people and our landscapes can be more resilient to fire and learn how to co-exist with it better.”

UBC's Blue and Gold fundraising campaign for students kicked-off at the university on November 27 to a capacity crowd.

About UBC's Okanagan campus

UBC’s Okanagan campus is an innovative hub for research and learning in the heart of British Columbia’s stunning Okanagan Valley. Ranked among the top 20 public universities in the world, UBC is home to bold thinking and discoveries that make a difference. Established in 2005, the Okanagan campus combines a globally recognized UBC education with a tight-knit and entrepreneurial community that welcomes students and faculty from around the world. For more visit ok.ubc.ca.

]]>https://news.ok.ubc.ca/2017/11/27/ubc-announces-100-million-fundraising-campaign-to-help-students/feed/0From 100 to zero in two weeks flathttps://news.ok.ubc.ca/hsd/2017/11/15/from-100-to-zero-in-two-weeks-flat/
https://news.ok.ubc.ca/hsd/2017/11/15/from-100-to-zero-in-two-weeks-flat/#commentsWed, 15 Nov 2017 14:00:51 +0000https://news.ok.ubc.ca/?p=14829Is one diabetic’s journey to freedom from medication the answer for all?

J.J. had a choice. Continue to consume a daily cocktail of diabetes medication or change the way he eats.

For the Vancouver Island resident, it was a no-brainer. He opted for the latter and joined a new clinical trial offered jointly between UBC’s Okanagan campus and Pharmasave.

The study is testing whether a low-carbohydrate therapeutic nutrition intervention can help patients with Type 2 diabetes get their blood sugar levels under control and reduce their medications.

“My story has been incredible so far,” says J.J. “I’ve gone from 100 units of insulin to zero in two weeks and I’m slowly reducing many other medications for everything from high blood pressure to cholesterol.”

But what does this story mean for others suffering from Type 2 diabetes or prediabetes? Is a change in diet the silver bullet?

Jonathan Little, assistant professor in UBC Okanagan’s School of Health and Exercise Sciences.

Why is J.J.’s story so interesting as a researcher?

The idea that you can “reverse” Type 2 diabetes, or at least get the disease into remission, is a novel and intriguing one that goes against the current dogma that Type 2 diabetes is a chronic progressive disease. Anecdotes and personal stories are valuable in science because they give us an indication of what might be possible, where to go and what to try next. Stories of personal successes like J.J.’s have led to our research team working on a much larger study, in collaboration with Pharmasave across BC, to see whether it is possible to reverse Type 2 diabetes on a larger scale.

Is this proof that diet or lifestyle can cure diabetes?

No. What this tells me is that reversal of Type 2 diabetes is possible with a dietary approach and that we need to look at a much greater number of people. We need to apply thoughtful tests and proper study designs to produce Grade A evidence. While this individual result is exciting and should be celebrated, it is important that we continue to conduct rigorous clinical trials to determine whether the results are repeatable, robust, and sustainable across most or all individuals who have Type 2 diabetes.

Does his story mean that others will get the same results?

Maybe or maybe not. That’s why we’ve designed the study. It’s important to keep in mind that anecdotes may be very powerful but that doesn’t mean that the results apply to everyone. Every person with Type 2 diabetes has a different genetic profile, different environmental exposures, different background so may not respond the same way. We conduct a randomized control trial, such as ours, to help determine if the results apply, on the average, to individuals in spite of all of these factors.

What are the next steps?

We are aiming to recruit 200 participants across 13 sites in BC within the next year. Engaging more people interested in reversing their Type 2 diabetes is our most immediate next step and will help us better understand this disease.

About UBC's Okanagan campus

UBC’s Okanagan campus is an innovative hub for research and learning in the heart of British Columbia’s stunning Okanagan Valley. Ranked among the top 20 public universities in the world, UBC is home to bold thinking and discoveries that make a difference. Established in 2005, the Okanagan campus combines a globally recognized UBC education with a tight-knit and entrepreneurial community that welcomes students and faculty from around the world. For more visit ok.ubc.ca.

Partnership sets-up university laboratory downtown Kelowna

With world diabetes day just around the corner on November 14, UBC Okanagan associate professor Mary Jung wants to help those living with type 2 diabetes or prediabetes create, and more importantly, maintain healthy habits.

The developer and researcher has devoted her research career to investigating what makes healthy habits stick. Her laboratory at UBC’s Okanagan campus —while petri dish and beaker-free— has been home to multiple studies that sought to identify how to make lasting dietary and exercise changes. The result: Small Steps for Big Changes, a three-week personalized diet and exercise lifestyle counselling program for individuals at risk of type 2 diabetes.

With the help of a private BC foundation, Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research, and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Small Steps for Big Changes is now available to the Okanagan community at the Kelowna Downtown YMCA.

Developed in 2012 with an initial group of 32 participants with prediabetes, the personalized, one-on-one, training and counselling program showed promising results. Fast forward to 2016, and once again, the program has proven to result in long-lasting positive lifestyle changes for its 100 participants at risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

The YMCA UBC collaboration represents a unique form of research in action. While typically health research experiences a 7-year delay from study to practice, the YMCA-based lab offers the cost-free, accessible program while continuing to gather evidence for wider adoption.

“This pilot represents an opportunity for continuing to build evidence of the program’s success, while putting the time-efficient, effective program directly in the hands of people who can use it,” says Jung, who explains the vision for the program is to offer access across British Columbia, and beyond.

While adhering to a healthy diet and regular exercise have innumerable rewards for all populations, the program was developed with the intention of addressing the silent epidemic of prediabetes, which Diabetes Canada reports is expected to grow to 23 per cent of the Canadian population by 2025.

“The goal is to help prevent the development of type 2 diabetes in those at risk by providing a program that is accessible and cost free,” says Jung.

“Our aim is to help individuals at risk of developing type 2 diabetes to become independent exercisers and more devoted to a healthier diet. In the end, we want to enable positive, healthy and life-long changes to behaviour.”

YMCA of Okanagan was critical to moving the laboratory from campus to community. When Karlene Sewell, General Manager of Health Initiatives, learned of the program, it was a logical collaboration.

“YMCA of Okanagan is dedicated to building healthy communities,” says Sewell. “Small Steps for Big Changes represents YMCA’s pursuit of new programs and services that address the specific and unique needs in the communities we serve.”

The downtown community lab represents the first small step towards big changes for the YMCA and UBC partnership.

About UBC's Okanagan campus

UBC’s Okanagan campus is an innovative hub for research and learning in the heart of British Columbia’s stunning Okanagan Valley. Ranked among the top 20 public universities in the world, UBC is home to bold thinking and discoveries that make a difference. Established in 2005, the Okanagan campus combines a globally recognized UBC education with a tight-knit and entrepreneurial community that welcomes students and faculty from around the world. For more visit ok.ubc.ca.

Every fall UBC’s Okanagan campus hosts Thrive, a weeklong series of events for the university community focused on building positive mental health for everyone.

This year Thrive moves off campus to Kelowna’s downtown Rotary Centre for the Arts, where UBC Well-being hosts a panel event with faculty members who are working on several different aspects of mental health and well-being. The public is encouraged to learn about current research being conducted by UBC Okanagan faculty and be a part of the conversation on mental health at this free community event.

The panel showcases current mental-health and resiliency research:

Hilla Shlomi, the director of UBC's Social Work Clinic, and Harry Miller, clinical associate professor of psychology, will talk about UBC Okanagan’s Interdisciplinary Clinic

About UBC's Okanagan campus

UBC’s Okanagan campus is an innovative hub for research and learning in the heart of British Columbia’s stunning Okanagan Valley. Ranked among the top 20 public universities in the world, UBC is home to bold thinking and discoveries that make a difference. Established in 2005, the Okanagan campus combines a globally recognized UBC education with a tight-knit and entrepreneurial community that welcomes students and faculty from around the world. For more visit ok.ubc.ca.

Community-based prevention and management are key goals

The UBC Faculty of Medicine Southern Medical Program is launching a new research program aimed at progressing the research front when it comes to the prevention and management of chronic diseases.

According to the Public Health Agency of Canada, three in five Canadians over the age of 20 live with a chronic illness and four in five are at risk. In Canada, 67 per cent of all deaths each year are caused by four major chronic conditions: cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular and chronic respiratory disease.

Based at UBC Okanagan, the newly-introduced Chronic Disease Prevention Program (CDPP) will harness the strengths of researchers from both Okanagan and Vancouver campuses and Interior Health (IH) to support new discoveries and knowledge translation in this ever-pressing domain. Kathleen Martin Ginis, a professor with UBC Faculty of Medicine and UBC Okanagan Faculty of Health and Social Development, is the founding CDPP director.

“Our end goal is to foster research excellence that’s responsive to the healthcare needs of our region’s communities both urban and rural, and advances the international research field,” says Martin Ginis.

The first step, she explains, is to recruit an interdisciplinary team of clinical and implementation scientists and community health researchers who will work under the CDPP umbrella. Martin Ginis also plans to establish new partnerships with health professionals and community-health organizations throughout the IH region.

“Our collective efforts will focus on new investigations in the areas of physical activity and nutrition/healthy eating, and diabetes, cardiovascular disease, neurotrauma and neurodegenerative diseases, and implementing those research findings into the community,” she adds.

To bolster the program’s development, Martin Ginis will serve as the inaugural Reichwald Family UBC Southern Medical Program Chair in Preventive Medicine. Established by the Reichwald family, the endowed chair will accelerate the development of an academic research program that advances our understanding of chronic disease and establishes new community-based prevention programs.

“The growing prevalence of chronic diseases within our region’s health populations has brought prevention and management to the front lines of healthcare delivery,” says Dr. Allan Jones, regional associate dean, Interior, UBC Faculty of Medicine. “We are deeply committed to contributing to this research arena and directly benefiting the communities where our students, faculty, and researchers train and serve.”

UBC Professor Kathleen Martin Ginis.

About Kathleen Martin Ginis

Kathleen Martin Ginis is a professor with UBC Faculty of Medicine Department of Medicine, Division of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and the UBC Okanagan Faculty of Health and Social Development, School of Health and Exercise Sciences. She is the founding director of the Southern Medical Program’s Chronic Disease Prevention Program and inaugural Reichwald Family UBC Southern Medical Program Chair in Preventive Medicine.

Martin Ginis is the founding director of Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) Action Canada, a national alliance of community-based organizations and university-based researchers working together to advance physical activity participation in people with spinal cord injury. She is also the principal investigator of the Canadian Disability Participation Project and an ICORD (International Collaboration on Repair Discoveries) principal investigator. Her research studies are some of the first to outline the psychosocial benefits and strategies for increasing physical activity in adults with spinal cord injury.

About UBC's Okanagan campus

UBC’s Okanagan campus is an innovative hub for research and learning in the heart of British Columbia’s stunning Okanagan Valley. Ranked among the top 20 public universities in the world, UBC is home to bold thinking and discoveries that make a difference. Established in 2005, the Okanagan campus combines a globally recognized UBC education with a tight-knit and entrepreneurial community that welcomes students and faculty from around the world. For more visit ok.ubc.ca.

In the quest to improve physical performance, many athletes are turning to untested nutritional supplements. But in the case of one recently available and popular class of supplements—ketone salts—research from UBC’s Okanagan campus suggests it may inhibit, rather than improve, athletic performance during high-intensity exercise.

“Ketone salts are relatively new to the market and there’s not much research on their impact on performance,” says the study’s co-author Jonathan Little, assistant professor in UBC Okanagan’s School of Health and Exercise Sciences. “We know from one previously published study that ketone supplements may improve long-duration endurance performance but we’re interested what happens during short-duration and high-intensity workouts, like running a 10k or cycling up a hill.”

Ketone salts work by artificially elevating blood ketone levels, similar to what happens naturally during periods of starvation, and forces the body to rely on burning fat as a fuel, explains Little. Burning fat is a more effective long-term fuel but is more complex to process and isn’t as readily accessible for quick bursts of muscle activity as is a fuel like glucose.

“Elevated blood ketones seem to inhibit the body’s use of glycogen, the stored form of glucose, and favours burning fat instead,” adds Little. “That means that the body’s quick-burning fuel cannot be accessed during high-intensity bursts of activity and athletic performance is dropping off as a result.”

In his study, Little recruited ten healthy adult males with similar athletic abilities and body mass indices. After a period of fasting, they were asked to consume either beta-hydroxybutyrate ketone salts or a flavour-matched placebo, in a randomized order, and then engage in a cycling time trial. Power output on the day participants consumed ketone salts was seven per cent lower than on the day when they consumed the placebo.

“Often these supplements are marketed as a means of improving athletic performance but in this case, the research tells a very different story,” says Little. “On top of that, the long-term impacts of artificially increasing blood ketone levels—essentially tricking the body into thinking it is in a state of starvation—is completely unknown.”

“I hope this helps athletes navigate the science of supplements rather than relying on label marketing alone.”

About UBC's Okanagan campus

UBC’s Okanagan campus is an innovative hub for research and learning in the heart of British Columbia’s stunning Okanagan Valley. Ranked among the top 20 public universities in the world, UBC is home to bold thinking and discoveries that make a difference. Established in 2005, the Okanagan campus combines a globally recognized UBC education with a tight-knit and entrepreneurial community that welcomes students and faculty from around the world. For more visit ok.ubc.ca.

Experts provide tips on how to raise happy healthy kids in today’s world

Ask any parent. Their most important goal is to raise children who are healthy—physically, cognitively, socially and emotionally.

Yet with childhood obesity and Type I diabetes rates soaring, and screen time and sedentary behaviour on the increase, even the most well-meaning parents, grandparents and caregivers may be missing the mark.

This year, UBC Okanagan’s annual Mini-Med public health education series will focus on children’s health. Top practitioners and experts will share their knowledge about today’s health hazards when it comes to raising children.

Mini-Med, presented by alumni UBC, is a four-part educational lecture series open to the public. Starting Wednesday, October 18, sessions take place weekly at UBC’s Clinical Academic Campus, at Kelowna General Hospital. Series registration: Adults are $30, students and seniors are $20.

Mini-Med curriculum: Children’s health

October 18—Dr. Shazan Amed: Live 5-2-1-0Dr. Shazan Amed, a pediatric endocrinologist at BC Children’s Hospital, stresses that obesity and Type 2 diabetes are preventable. She is the founder and project lead of Live 5-2-1-0, an initiative of BC Children’s Hospital aimed at preventing childhood obesity and its related complications like Type 2 diabetes.

October 25—Assoc. Prof. Ali McManus: Please Wait to be SeatedUBC Okanagan Associate Professor Ali McManus will discuss sedentary behaviour and the importance of keeping children active. She is the president of the North American Society for Pediatric Exercise Medicine and directs the Pediatric Inactivity Physiology Lab which focuses on the impact exercise, physical activity and sedentary behaviour have on the wellbeing of children.

November 1—Dr. Tom Warshawski: There’s More to This Than Meets the BMIAlmost every day, a new conflicting message about the health consequences of obese kids hits the media. Dr. Warshawski, consultant pediatrician in Kelowna and current chair of the Childhood Obesity Foundation, will provide an evidence-based overview of how to optimize health through healthy eating and active living instead of focusing on the BMI.

November 8—Deborah MacNamara: Raising Children in a Digital World
Teacher and counsellor, Deborah MacNamara will provide strategies on raising healthy children in our digital world. She will give tips to help put parents in the driver’s seat by making sense of kids from the inside out and provide strategies for preparing our children to live healthy lives in this digital and ever-changing world.

To learn more about Mini-Med and this year’s speakers, or to register visit: minimed.ok.ubc.ca